Applied Nanotech
Holdings, Inc. announced that as a result of the success of the joint research
program of the companies, it has entered into a license agreement with a prominent
sporting goods manufacturer covering Applied Nanotech's carbon composite technology.
The license grants the sporting goods manufacturer the exclusive right to use
ANI's technology in the manufacture and sale of tennis and badminton racquets
in Japan and Taiwan, and the nonexclusive right to sell these products on a
worldwide basis. The license agreement also contemplates the potential expansion
into the golf club shaft market, defining the terms and royalties should the
manufacturer choose to enter production in the future.
In exchange for this license, ANI will receive an initial royalty fee of $577,000
and an ongoing royalty of 4% based on sales of the sporting goods manufacturer's
products using the technology. The manufacturer will also fund additional development
of the technology to facilitate integration of the technology into the manufacturing
process.
"As we reported in our press release of June 17, 2008, ANI has achieved
improvements of over 40% in flexural strength and over 30% in compression strength
for epoxy/carbon nanotube composites. The properties of these new composites
were successfully transferred to the process of manufacturing fiber reinforced
plastics (FRP) where ANI achieved a promising 23% improvement in the flexural
strength and improvements in the compression strength of the final RFP, which
will allow the research and development results to be transferred to manufacturing,"
said Dr. Zvi Yaniv, CEO of Applied Nanotech, Inc.
"We are pleased that our efforts in the composites area have led to this
license agreement," said Tom Bijou, Chairman and CEO of Applied Nanotech
Holdings, Inc. "Although the total size of the exclusive markets for the
targeted racquet products is limited, estimated at less than $150 million annually
in the exclusive region, our success with this project has opened the door to
opportunities with other companies and for other applications. We expect composites
to be an increasingly important area of our business allowing lighter weight
products with equal strength or stronger products of the same weight."